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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Technology
Katie McQue

Meta documents show 100,000 children sexually harassed daily on its platforms

Meta Facebook IG Lawsuit Apple Instagram New Mexico
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Filing is latest in a lawsuit initiated by New Mexico AG’s office, which alleges Meta’s social networks have become marketplaces for child predators. Photograph: Lionel Bonaventure/AFP/Getty Images

Meta estimates about 100,000 children using Facebook and Instagram receive online sexual harassment each day, including “pictures of adult genitalia”, according to internal company documents made public late Wednesday.

The unsealed legal filing includes several allegations against the company based on information the New Mexico attorney general’s office received from presentations by Meta employees and communications between staff. The documents describe an incident in 2020 when the 12-year-old daughter of an executive at Apple was solicited via IG Direct, Instagram’s messaging product.

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